Expert: Shanda - 6/25/2008

Question
Puzzling this one out...Dealing with T-SQUARES issues. Sure there are others out there, but hopefully not too many others with my UGLEE sets of t-squares to contend with...
Good God my Karma must be heavy....

1. Mars in 12th house in Cancer opposite Saturn in the  7th in Capricorn squares Mercury in 10th in Taurus which squares back to Mars.

Then, sitting in the "empty leg" of the first t-square is a badly aspected Neptune which is the opposition point in a  set of semi superimposed t-squares as follows:

2. Neptune in fourth in Scorpio opposite Sun in 10th in Taurus --Square Jupiter in Aquarius in 7th, squares back to Neptune
AND
3. Neptune in in fourth in Scorpio this time opposite Mercury ( conjunct sun) in 10th in Taurus, square Saturn in Capricorn in 7th, which is squared back to Neptune.

Childhood abuse issues, father was abuser, chaotic and critical homelife in childhood,  marriage to father like person failed and ended in divorce, Issues with toxic self criticism as well as a general lack of self control are some of what is clearly represented in all these t-squares.  There is a promising new marriage to a kind hearted person from the past however now.

These t-squares makes an inner sort of grand cross formation (oy vey!) without one of the squares around the outside - the empty part is on the side where the 1-3 houses are.  
Since there is such a badly aspected planet in the empty leg of #1 t-square, I looked for help in that sort of "empty area" ( the missing square area from a "would be grand cross", from which emanates a few trines ranging from the 1st house through the 3rd house. For the 4th-7th-10th t-squares with Jupiter and Saturn focal points -- I found this: The moon trines saturn and Jupiter from the third house which I see as my present husband's return to me through communication ( he found me on the internet and we communicated initially through email. He is my hs sweetheart who loved me all through the years we were apart and we actually shared company through dreams while we were apart).  Does his entrance into my life balance the t-squares in the 10th, 7th and 4th dealing with my unhappy and abusive childhood and subsequent 1st marriage? Actually you don't have to answer that personal question but instead what I want to know is-- What does a person do to understand what is needed when the opposite square point of a t-square is an opposition itself?

If you have time, one more question but understand if this is too much?!
T-SQuare definition question:
Also, those 3 t-squares are the planetary ones. I do have what appear to be similar t-squares with points of Midheaven ( conjunct mercury) and Ascendant ( conjunct mars) Is there such a thing as a t-square between these points and planets such as ASC---Neptune----Sun?  I hope not although either way I still have the hard aspects so I guess it does not matter if it is a t-square or not.

I'd feel hopeless about this chart except I am taurus and very stubborn and I never give up. Thanks for any help you can give me in understanding what aperson can do to relieve the obstacles of t-squares when they overlap and there are so many of them. If there are others out there, I want them to know what to do, I've been searching for days now and studying....

Muchas Gracias in advance!

Answer
Dear Cathy,

Thank you for coming to me with your questions.

Your primary question was this:

"What does a person do to understand what is needed when the opposite square point of a t-square is an opposition itself?"

Well, when the opposite square point of a t-square is occupied by a planet, then we get a Grand Cross, which is a distinctly different aspect configuration than a t-square by definition and delineation (as I'm sure you already know). In your own chart, the first t-square you mentioned (formed by Saturn, Mercury, and Mars) is indeed a t-square, and not a Grand Cross. This is because Neptune is not within orb of squaring Saturn and Mars, even though it does oppose Mercury. However, Neptune has a way of becoming involved in the expression of this t-square by its opposition aspect to Sun-Neptune.  Here Neptune will play a supporting role instead of a starring role in the t-square drama.

You are wise to attend to the "missing link" (i.e. the point opposite the focal point of the t-square) when seeking to manage the energies of the t-square configuration, and I am glad to see that you are aware of this. For your Saturn-Mercury-Mars t-square, the missing link is NOT Neptune because Neptune is not actually positioned within an allowable orb from the point opposite the focal point of the t-square. [I should mention here that the "true" mathematical focal point of this t-square falls in late Aries, but since Mercury is within allowable orb of squaring both Saturn and Mars, Mercury works to discharge the energies of the t-square.] In your chart, there is no planet sitting in the "true" mathematical opposition point, actually.  In this case, you should consider the qualities of the house and sign placement of the "missing link" point. I do not have your birth data, but I am able to surmise from what you told me about your chart that the point opposite the "true" mathematical focal point of the t-square falls in late Libra in the 4th house.

So, what are the concerns of Libra in the 4th house? One that readily comes to mind is "domestic harmony." You have mentioned that your early family life and first marriage were rather lacking in this quality, so we know that it is important for your own ability to cope with the Saturn-Mercury-Mars t-square that you make efforts to involve yourself more fully in making domestic harmony happen. The retrogradation of Venus (lord of Libra) suggests that, while you may be inclined to think about this issue a great deal, clear action is not always taken in the outside world. Try to work on being an agent of domestic harmony at home yourself, instead of focusing so much on proving your worth as a person to everyone else through public achievement (at work, etc.).

Similarly, the Neptune-Jupiter-Sun t-square gets balanced not by over-focusing on your relationship, but instead by attending to who you are as an individual, becoming more aware of how you yourself are contributing to interpersonal problems that you may have. How are you coming across to others, really? Is it helping or hindering mutual understanding? This will call for some honest self-examination, if it is to be a useful exercise in the long run.

You also asked about whether your current spouse is helping you to balance the issues indicated by the Neptune-Jupiter-Sun t-square. From your chart, I get the impression that he is being helpful just by serving as a mirror through which you can gain a better understanding of yourself, and of why you struggle with interpersonal matters. All the same, most of the hard work (i.e. the development of true self awareness) here will have to be done by you.

Finally, you wanted to know whether a t-square could be formed by one or more planets aspecting sensitive points in the chart (such as the Ascendant degree or the Midheaven). My answer to that is technically, no, but in some cases (where two planets are in the appropriate relationship both to each other and to one sensitive point) then a type of pseudo t-square could be energetically in operation; this would especially be true if the sensitive point in question were positioned at the focal point of the would-be t-square. I have seen this idea work well in the case of Grand Trines, but I have never observed the effects of a similarly disposed t-square.

I hope this is helpful information for you, Cathy. May your continued studies and efforts to gain self-understanding be successful.   

Very best wishes,
Shanda